Biorepository Data Portal

Annual, simple or branched from the base, decumbent to erect, 1-4(-8) dm; lvs oblanceolate to oblong or lanceolate, 3-8 cm, tapering to the base, prominently sinuate-dentate to pinnatifid, green, sparsely puberulent to glabrous above; fls few, sessile in the axils of the scarcely reduced upper lvs, not forming a distinct spike; hypanthium hirsute, 1.5-3.5 cm; sep 6-12 mm, reflexed separately or connivent; pet 5-18 mm; fr linear, straight or curved, 1.5-3.5 cm; seeds thick-ellipsoid, pale brown, conspicuously pitted; 2n=14. Dry, usually sandy soil; Me. to S.D., s. to S. Amer. May-Oct. Our plants, as here described, are var. laciniata.

Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.

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Kearney and Peebles 1969, McDougall 1973

Duration: Annual Nativity: Native Lifeform: Forb/Herb General: Herbaceous annual or perennial, simple or branching erect, ascending, or semi-prostrate, to 70 cm tall, strigose, villous, or hirsute. Leaves: Alternate, lance-oblong or oblanceolate, sinuate-dentate or only slightly toothed, to 10 cm long, the lower ones petioled, the upper ones sessile or on short petioles. Flowers: Yellow or white, aging pink or red, petals 5-18 mm long, solitary in the upper leaf axils, hypanthium 15-35 mm long, deciduous after flowering, sepals 4, 6-12 mm long, stamens 8. Fruits: Capsules cylindric, 10-35 mm long, 4-celled, dehiscent. Seeds many, brown, evenly pitted. Ecology: Found in pine forests, damp and disturbed areas, from 1,500-9,000 ft (457-2743 m); flowering May-October. Notes: The deeply incised leaves and small yellow flowers help to identify this species. Ethnobotany: Specific use of the species is unknown, but the genus was used as a compound infusion wash to treat sore skin, and the leaves were boiled or fried and eaten as greens. Etymology: Oenothera is from Greek oinos, wine and thera, to imbibe, while laciniata means torn or deeply cut, referring to the fringed petals. Synonyms: Raimannia laciniata Editor: LCrumbacher, 2011